Not long ago, the industry regularly rolled over state legislatures, convincing lawmakers to let lenders charge 500 percent annual interest rates or more on small, short-term cash loans to borrowers who needed a quick financial fix. Both the subprime mortgage meltdown and a move by Congress to put a 36 percent interest rate cap on payday loans to military personnel have shifted the momentum in the payday lending debate. It would prohibit lenders from holding personal checks or gaining electronic access to bank accounts in order to make loans, which would effectively halt most payday lending. In at least a dozen states — some of which authorized payday lending just five or six years ago — lawmakers will try during the next legislative cycle to impose 36 percent rate caps on payday loans. During the past decade, the industry won battles in state after state, as lawmakers either authorized payday lending or exempted lenders from usury laws that prohibit finance companies and small lenders from charging more than 36 percent. read more